A Second Chance
by DramaLexy
Summary: Judgment Day AU. A second chance for Jenny and Gibbs. Can they take advantage of it while they have the opportunity? my first ever NCIS fic. Jibbs and a little Tiva.
1. Prologue

TITLE: A SECOND CHANCE

SUMMARY: Judgment Day AU. A second chance for Jenny and Gibbs. Can they take advantage of it while they have the opportunity? my first NCIS fic

DISCLAIMER: If I owned them...there'd be a few changes.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: So this is my first dip into the world of NCIS. I resisted seeing Judgment Day for as long as possible, and then saw a hole that would allow this AU to be born. There are a few plot changes, the most obvious being that Jenny isn't dead by the time Tony and Ziva get to the diner. Also, there's no cover-up about her death. This is definitely a Jibbs fic, with a little Tiva mixed in. There's a happy ending eventually, although I don't claim it's a perfect ending (when is life ever perfect?) Hope you enjoy.

* * *

The red Mustang slowed to a halt outside of the dusty green diner. "There it is," Ziva told Tony. She then noticed that their car wasn't the only one parked on the road. "Look, I have seen that SUV before."

Tony also stared at it for a moment, trying to place where. "Gas station," he realized and they both got out of the convertible.

"You still believe the director is on one of your 'booty calls'?" Ziva asked as they started walking toward the abandoned restaurant.

He shot her a Look. "Well, if there's a sock on the doorknob, you're knocking."

She was about to make some comment about that, when they both realized that something was amiss. Bullet-holes riddled one section of the front door and multiple windows had been shattered, the glass littering the ground outside. They drew their guns and quietly moved forward. Tony could see a bloody body on the ground through the barely-open door.

"Go ahead," he whispered to Ziva, getting in position to cover her as she went inside. As their eyes adjusted to the darkened diner, they could see other bodies around the room – and then Ziva recognized the form slumped by the counter.

"Tony," she quietly called, and he joined her, both of them staring in shock. Tears pricked his eyes as he slowly knelt and felt for a pulse on their director's neck. He swallowed a sob when he actually felt something.

"She's alive," he told Ziva, and she instantly pulled out her phone to call for an ambulance.

* * *

They'd been seriously concerned that Jenny would die before the EMTs could get there. The blood loss from no less than three bullet wounds was extensive and they didn't know how long she'd been there like that. Their second phone call had been to Gibbs; they'd drawn straws for who got that job and who got to make the third call – SecNav.

The investigation was already beginning, with Leon Vance taking control, and Gibbs didn't feel that that was really where his presence was required. He instead headed back down the dusty desert roads toward the nearest town with a hospital that had a prayer of being able to deal with Jenny's injuries. It was a long drive, and he couldn't help but wonder at every moment if he was passing the place where she had died. Since everyone else was back at the scene, no one knew if she'd even made it to the hospital.

He flashed his badge at the nurse at the desk, "I need information on the condition of Jennifer Shepard." She looked briefly at the clipboard beside her before looking back up – although her eyes didn't meet his.

"If you'll have a seat, Sir, the doctor will be out to speak with you momentarily."

"I don't want to talk to your doctor! I want you to tell me how she's doing!"

At that moment, the aforementioned doctor approached. "It's okay, Maggie," he told the nurse before pulling Gibbs aside. "I'm Dr. Arnold; I was on-call when Ms. Shepard was brought in. Are you kin?" He again pulled out his badge. "I see. You weren't contacted by your superiors?"

"She IS my superior," he shot back. There was only one question he really wanted an answer to at the moment: "Is she alive?"

The other man looked down. "I'm sorry. Her injuries were extensive. We tried everything we could, but by the time she got here…it was too late."

"C-can I see her?" was the only other question that seemed significant.

The doctor frowned. "There was probably some mix-up in communication. I received orders from the Navy about an hour ago to prepare the body for transport to Washington DC. It's already gone."

* * *

From there on out, Gibbs was running on autopilot. If he stopped for a minute to think about what had actually happened, he was pretty sure he was going to be useless to everyone around him. Jenny deserved more than that.

Ziva and Tony made a miserable twosome. They'd been tasked with protecting their director – their friend – and had completely failed. Solving the case wasn't going to balm that wound. They'd be forced to deal with it for the rest of their lives.

With the assassin dealt with, the case was closed and all there was left to do was figure out some way to adapt to this strange new reality where their lives would never be the same. In his darkened basement, Jethro pulled out a bottle of bourbon and two glasses. He filled them both, and clinked his glass against the second before finishing off the contents in two gulps. It was going to take a lot of alcohol to drown this one.

His cell phone chirped, indicating that he'd gotten a text message, and he at first ignored it. The only people who would be calling him were his team (whom he didn't want to deal with) or someone above him in the chain of command (whom he REALLY didn't want to deal with). He forgot all about the device until his bottle was empty and decided to stumble his way upstairs to get some sleep. It fell from the workbench when he drunkenly bumped into it and he reached for it to make sure it wasn't broken. The screen lit up when he flipped it open, and the reminder about his message was displayed. The number was unidentified, and words that appeared made his heart race.

I'M SAFE. I LOVE YOU.

* * *

TBC...

I love feedback, so feel free to leave me some :-)


	2. Sorting Out the Truth

That first message left Gibbs with more questions than answers. Jenny had always lectured him to have patience, and he finally was being forced to learn a little. He didn't like it.

Lately, there had been a 5th member on the team – guilt. Tony and Ziva were both struggling with their roles in the shooting and neither really knew how to deal with it. They certainly felt that Gibbs blamed them – and rightfully so. Tim got a look on his face sometimes that made both of them uneasy. And the fact that Abby and Ducky were so understanding just made everything worse.

"Where's DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked Ziva and Tim as he came down from MTAC late one afternoon.

"He said he was gone for the day," Ziva replied. They'd been working for the last 36 hours straight on a case involving a missing petty officer – unfortunately, it hadn't had a happy ending.

Gibbs nodded. "We're done here. Go home, both of you. Get some rest."

Ziva started to follow his instructions and go home, but found herself making a detour. As she parked her car and started walking across the grass, she was surprised to see someone else had beaten her to her destination. "I did not expect to find you here," she told Tony as she knelt beside him in front of Jenny's grave.

He shrugged. "Had some things to think about." Ziva slowly nodded, and neither spoke again for a long moment. "I should have listened to you," he finally said.

"Why would you start now?"

"We should have stayed with her."

"I, too, decided to allow her to go off on her own."

"Yeah, but you were instantly suspicious that something was wrong."

She sighed. "I did not follow through with that suspicion quickly enough."

Tony looked away. "We could have helped her. Whatever was going on, we could have helped. Why didn't she trust us?"

"It was not that," Ziva assured him. "She did not want to put us in danger. She was always…always very protective of her friends."

They stayed in amicable silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. Both looked up, however, as raindrops began to fall. As summer storms often do, it went from a sprinkle to a downpour in seconds. "Come on!" Tony called, pulling Ziva toward his car, which was closer.

They were both soaked by the time they got inside and shut the doors. The rain beat down steadily on the roof and windshield. "Guess I should have taken an umbrella," Tony quietly mused as they watched. They both turned to each other at the same time, their noses almost touching. After a moment's pause, their lips met – the loss, longing, and unresolved tension they shared finally dissipating.

* * *

Things could have gone a lot farther that night than they did, but both agreed that they were beyond the point in their lives where sex in the backseat of a car was necessary. More than anything else, they wanted to get this right.

That, of course, meant keeping everything a secret. No sharing rides to work, no PDAs (Tony had to clarify the usage of that acronym), and nothing else – comments or actions – that could tip Gibbs off.

"Morning, Boss," Tony told Gibbs as he got off the elevator and saw the older man coming down the steps.

"You're late, DiNozzo."

"Fifteen minutes! I had a little, uh, car trouble." In actuality, both he and Ziva had overslept at his apartment. He'd dropped her off at her place to get her car and was somewhat irked to see that she'd beaten him to work.

"Follow McGee; you're on your way to Vienna."

"Sure, Boss."

"Ziva, you're with me," Gibbs called to her, stopping at his desk to grab his gear before they left.

"Agent Gibbs?" a voice called from upstairs, and he looked to see Vance on the landing. "I want to set up a meeting before your vacation time to get updates on your cases."

He frowned. "My vacation time?"

"I take it you haven't looked at your e-mail?" He quickly remembered who he was talking to – the question didn't actually require a response. "I approved your request for leave; I just want to be up to speed on your open investigations before you go."

Jethro had no idea what he was talking about, but didn't feel the need to share that fact. "Sure," was all he told the director. "I'll meet you downstairs," he added for Ziva before logging into his computer and checking for the e-mail Vance was talking about. Sure enough, there was a message approving the fact that he was supposed to be gone during the following week – except he'd never asked for the time off. Also in his inbox was a link to retrieve online plane tickets leaving from National Airport on Saturday. "What the…" he murmured to himself.

He felt his phone start to vibrate, and pulled it from his pocket. A new text message was waiting, although the sending number wasn't accessible. SEE YOU SOON, the message read, and Gibbs had to suppress a smile.

* * *

Alone at their crime scene while Gibbs talked to the local LEOs, Ziva quickly passed on to Tony and Tim what she'd overheard. "When was the last time Gibbs took a vacation?" she asked them.

"Um…I think it was…never," Tony replied.

"Exactly!"

"Maybe he wanted to visit someone," Tim suggested.

"Like, who, probie?"

He didn't have an answer. "Okay, maybe he just needs a break, then. To deal with everything that's happened. I know I would." Tony and Ziva exchanged a look as McGee moved on to continue taking photographs of the scene. If their boss was melting down, they were to blame for that as well.

* * *

Gibbs spent 13 hours of his Saturday taking multiple flights on his way from DC to the East Caribbean island of Martinique. A taxi drove him out to the remote address on the northern coast that was texted to him when he arrived at the airport in the capital of Fort-de-France. As he approached the small house, sunset lighting the sky like fire, Jenny was waiting in the doorway. Her hair was loose and her sundress blowing in the light breeze; she'd never looked so beautiful to him.

"_Bonjour_," she said with a smile as he walked up to the door.

Jethro returned it. "_Bonjou_r." There was no sense in keeping up their games anymore. They'd lost each other too many times not to take advantage of this miracle of findng each other again. Ducking his head slightly, he leaned over and kissed her. Jenny grinned as they broke apart, wiping her lipstick off of his lip with her finger.

"C'mon," she told him, leading him inside.

The whole story came out that night as they shared a bottle of bourbon on chairs in her backyard. Knowing the shooting couldn't have been random, SecNav had her pulled from the hospital in the desert almost as soon as she'd arrived with the official story being that she'd succumbed to her injuries. They'd been fully prepared to put her into protective custody, and since Jethro's investigation with Mike had been totally off the books, by the time the true motives behind the shooting were known, things were already in motion.

"I had one in the shoulder, one in the arm, and one in my stomach," she told him. "And I think maybe another just grazed my leg."

"There was a lot of blood," Jethro commented, his eyes fixed on the darkened landscape around them. Jenny tried to read his look for a moment.

"By the time I was conscious and lucid again, everything was over. I woke up here and got told the entire tale. Felt like someone was recounting a movie they'd seen last week, not telling me what had happened to my life."

"You could have come back," he quietly pointed out.

"I was already officially dead."

"Didn't have to stay that way."

She sighed, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. "I'm going to end up that way anyway. Jethro…"

"You're sick," he cut in, before she could say anything.

Jenny's eyes went wide. "How did you know?"

"Why does everyone always assume that I'm blind, deaf, and dumb? I'm an investigator – I investigated. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I…I would have."

"When?" he shot back. "Before it became glaringly obvious to everyone around you that something was very wrong?"

"Do you really want an apology, Jethro? I thought it was a sign of weakness? I've got a few coming if you want them."

He sighed. "No, I don't want them. I just wish…I wish you'd come to me, Jen. With your illness, with Svetlana – "

"Rule 18," she offered. It's better to seek forgiveness than ask permission.

"Rule 1," he fired back. Never screw over your partner.

"We're not partners anymore, Jethro."

He turned to her, his eyes bottomless pools of blue. "We were always partners, Jen."

* * *

TBC...


	3. How to Deal

Eventually, Jenny fell asleep in her chair, and Gibbs carried her inside to her room. She'd left blankets and pillows for him on the couch, and he tried to get some rest himself, but ended up being plagued by nightmares.

He was on a beach at a campsite like where he'd taken Shannon and Kelly years later. A smile crossed his face as he watched his daughter swim in the water. She'd been such an amazing girl. "Hi, Daddy!" she called when she saw him, waving.

"Hey, sweetheart." Giggling, she rode with one of the waves.

"How's dinner coming?" Shannon asked as she approached, looking toward the grill that he was standing beside.

"It's coming." After checking the food, he looked back out to the water to make sure Kelly hadn't gotten too far away. His stomach dropped as he realized he couldn't see her anywhere. "Kelly?" he called, but there was no sign of her. "Kelly!

He ran into the water, desperately looking for a clue as to where she might have gone under. She was a pretty good swimmer, and he couldn't believe she'd gotten into trouble that quickly. He glanced back at the shore, to make sure Shannon wasn't following him (the last thing he needed was to have to worry about her, too) but his first wife had disappeared as well. In her place, Jenny was standing there, watching him. He was about to question how that was possible – what was going on? – when a gunshot sounded. And then another. And then another. Jenny fell to the sand, crimson liquid pooling around her body.

"Jen!" he yelled, trying to swim back to her, but a current suddenly came from nowhere and he couldn't swim hard enough to overcome it. Jenny was only a few yards away from him, but beyond his reach. Kelly was gone, Shannon was gone – there was nothing he could do for any of them.

* * *

When Jenny woke up just after dawn, she quickly realized she was back inside and in her bed. Pulling on a robe, she found that Gibbs was sitting outside in his chair, just as he'd been when she'd fallen asleep. The sun was rising over the mountains. "_Bon matin_," she quietly said as she joined him.

"Morning," he replied.

"Did you sleep at all last night?"

He shrugged. "Wasn't really tired. Had things to think about."

"Like what?" That just earned her another shrug. "You want me to go start some coffee?"

"I wouldn't complain if you did," he replied with a cheeky little smile. Jenny returned it before heading back inside.

He followed a few minutes later and accepted the mug she handed him. Their fingers lingered together a moment longer than necessary.

"I'm sorry, Jen," he quietly said.

She frowned. "Why are you apologizing?"

"I should have kept you safe. I should have dealt with Svetlana in France all those years ago – "

"That was my job, Jethro."

"Protecting you was my job," he fired back. "And I failed!"

"It's not like I made it easy for you." She was surprised to see his eyes shining, about to overflow. "Jethro…"

"I saw your blood. I saw your blood all over, and it – it was like Shannon and Kelly all over again." She instantly put down their coffee mugs and pulled him into her arms. "I was too late. I couldn't protect you, I couldn't protect them…"

"Shh," she soothed. "That was my fault, Jethro. I didn't let you. I never thought…It's not your fault." Holding him close, she kissed his cheek, trying to comfort him. How could she not have considered what would happen to him if her little side mission had gone wrong? He always seemed so strong, but she knew him better than most.

As he pulled back slightly, they ended up face to face, electricity sparking through the air. Before either knew what had happened, his lips were on hers and they were moving backward toward her bedroom, discarded clothing marking their path. "You're sure?" he whispered to her as they landed together on the bed. Jenny nodded.

* * *

When she woke up a few hours later, she was alone in the bedroom again, but could smell food cooking in the kitchen. "Hey," Jethro said as he noticed her enter the room.

"Since when do you make breakfast?" Jenny asked.

He smiled. "I'm a man of many talents."

She laughed. "I hardly think making hard boiled eggs and toast is a talent." She went to retrieve her coffee cup from earlier so that she could reheat it, but the ceramic mug somehow slipped through her fingers. It landed on the counter – chipping, but not shattering – and its contents thankfully spilled in the direction of the sink.

"Jen?" Jethro asked, wondering what had happened.

She tried to smile. "Apparently I didn't have as good of a grip on that as I thought." She caught her right hand within her left, holding her fingers in a vain attempt to force them to stop trembling and cooperate.

"You okay?" he asked as he started to wipe up the spilled coffee. She grabbed a towel to help.

"I'm fine," she assured him. "As long as you're here, I'm fine."

* * *

Going back to DC and leaving Jenny behind was almost as hard as leaving her in Paris. Work wasn't even that much of a distraction – it was a constant reminder that she was gone.

"I want that address by the time I get back," Gibbs told McGee as he headed toward the elevators. "And find out where the hell DiNozzo and Ziva are!"

When the elevator door opened, however, he realized that he'd found his missing two team members for himself. And they were currently making out in the 'conference room.'

"I thought you hit the stop switch," were the first words out of Tony's mouth when he realized they'd been caught. Ziva shot him a look that could have frozen a sun. "Oh, I mean, uh, boss – "

"Case," was Gibbs' one-worded order.

"Right, boss," Tony replied, heading for his desk as quickly as possible. Ziva started to follow, but Gibbs grabbed her arm.

"Not you. Conference room."

He had to fight a small smile as he noticed the Israeli try to discretely fix her shirt while they got back inside the elevator. After hitting the button for the basement, Gibbs then flicked the stop switch.

"Gibbs – " she started, but he didn't let her get farther than that.

"I would have thought that someone would have gotten you up to speed on the rules three years ago, Officer David."

"They did."

"Did they leave out 12?"

"No, we just…it was not intentional – "

"Please tell me how what I just saw was an accident."

She sighed, flustered. "It was not an accident. It…it was Jenny."

That got his attention. "What?"

"After…after we lost her, we just…Life is short, yes? I am sorry, but following the rule was not worth it anymore."

Gibbs started the elevator moving again. "Jenny was why Rule 12 was invented," he quietly admitted. The doors opened with a ding as they reached the basement, and Gibbs got off, heading for autopsy. He then stopped, turned back, and put a hand on the door to keep it from trying to close. "You love him?" he asked.

Ziva looked stunned by the question. "Y-yes."

"Good," was all he replied before walking away.

* * *

"That was all he said?" Tony questioned Ziva when he cornered her later to find out how the conversation with Gibbs had gone. "You told him we decided to ignore his rules…and he walked away?"

Ziva sighed. She'd omitted their boss' final question for fear that she wouldn't like Tony's reaction. Things were new with them and they were still being very careful with each other. "Yes, Tony, that is all he said. Would you like to go ask him for confirmation?" She started to walk away back to her desk, but he caught her arm.

"You're lying."

"What?"

"I think I can tell by now when you're hiding something. C'mon, Zee, what'd he say?"

She shot him a murderous glare, which unfortunately had no effect. "He asked…he asked if I loved you," she finally admitted, absolutely loathing the fact that his expression was unreadable.

"And you said?" he asked.

"What do you think, Tony?"

"Knowing what I think doesn't mean I know what you said."

"What would you have wanted me to say?"

"The truth," he easily replied. "Would it help if you knew what I would have said?"

"Perhaps."

He smiled. "Yes."

In all honesty, she hadn't expected that short or simple of an answer. "Yes?" Ziva asked him. "That is what you would have said?"

"It's what you said, isn't it?"

"Yes…"

He leaned over to kiss her, but was interrupted by a smack to the back of the head. Neither of them had heard the elevator ding as it reached their floor. "Don't make me rethink the fact that I haven't fired one or both of you," Gibbs told them.

"Sorry, Gibbs," Ziva said, ducking out to head back to her desk. Tony didn't get away as cleanly.

"You know all the ways she could kill you if you break her heart?" Gibbs asked the younger man.

"Yeah, Boss."

"Good. You hurt her, and you're gonna have to worry about me before you worry about her."

Tony swallowed hard. "Got it, Boss."

* * *

TBC...


	4. Head Case

The best Jethro could do for his next trip to Martinique was a long weekend over the Fourth of July. The separation was incredibly hard after the past three years of seeing each other on a daily basis, especially now that their relationship had moved beyond the platonic stage again.

They made the most of their few days, spending all of the time together. One night, after dinner, they sat outside to watch the sunset together. Gibbs started telling her stories about what was going on back in DC.

"Abby got another tattoo," he told her.

"Where?"

"I didn't ask."

Jenny giggled. "Okay, of what?"

"Didn't ask that, either." Now she really laughed. "Hey, if I can't see it, I don't need to know."

"Fair enough, I suppose. How about Tim? Has he finished his next novel?"

"I'm not sure, really. He's gotten a little quieter lately."

"Don't let them pull away, Jethro."

"He'll be fine. It was the same with Kate."

She nodded slightly. "What kind of trouble has Tony gotten himself into?"

"Shot Rule 12 to hell."

That got Jenny's attention. "With who?"

"Who do you think?"

"No!"

Gibbs laughed. "Yeah."

"Oh, God, Ziva'll have to tell me how that…" She slowly trailed off.

"Jen?"

"I'm okay, just…forgot for a second." She looked away, and he could tell she was trying to blink away tears. Ziva wasn't going to be telling her anything because Ziva thought she was dead. This wasn't just some vacation, this was her life for however much of it was left. She wouldn't be seeing any of her friends again and somehow had to come to grips with that.

"You could come back with me," he suggested. She shook her head.

"It wouldn't be fair to them."

"What about what's fair to you, Jen?"

She kissed him. "I'm okay. I have you; that's all I need."

"We can talk about something else," he offered.

"No, no, I want to know what's going on with everyone. I do miss them, Jethro, but they…I want to know that they're all right. So when did this happen with Tony and Ziva? How long did they keep it from you?"

"That I'm not sure about, but I don't think it was long. You know how good DiNozzo is about keeping his mouth shut…"

* * *

After that second trip, it was pretty much impossible to ignore the fact that Gibbs was getting harder to deal with at work. He didn't want to be there – Martinique was much more preferable – and it showed. His coffee intake had doubled and Tim and Tony were probably about two Gibbs-smacks away from concussions. Even Ziva had gotten hit upside the head a couple times; Tony had thought for sure that the Israeli would hit him back, but she just let it go. They all tried to cut a wide path as much as they could and let him get his frustration out on suspects instead of them whenever possible. Finally, even Vance had to notice – and decided to get drastic.

One September afternoon, Ziva, Tony, and Tim were watching from behind the glass as he worked on breaking their latest suspect when Vance came in the room.

"Why is he in there and you're all out here?" he asked.

Tony raised an eyebrow, "Um, rule 22?" he offered.

The director shot him a Look. "Agent Gibbs had an appointment fifteen minutes ago that he was specifically told not to be late for."

"He did not mention that to us," Ziva told him.

He rolled his eyes with a sigh. "Of course not." Vance started to go to knock on the door, but Tim caught his arm.

"Trust me, you don't want to do that," he tried to warn the director. However, after receiving an icy glare, McGee let go.

As anyone on his team could have predicted, Gibbs looked pissed when he opened the door. "What?" he barked.

"DiNozzo, David, take over," Vance told them. Both quickly escaped into the interrogation room and shut the door. "You had somewhere you were supposed to be right now, Gibbs."

"I had something better to do," he replied.

"Not anymore you don't. Go."

* * *

It was another fifteen minutes before Gibbs showed up for his appointment. Dr. Elizabeth Waverly, a Navy psychiatrist, offered a small smile as he came into her office. "I was wondering if you were actually going to show up, Agent Gibbs."

"Tried my best not to," he replied.

"So I noticed. Have a seat." She indicated one of the chairs by the window, and got up from her desk to join him. "Your co-workers are concerned about you."

He sniffed. "I'm fine."

"I've seen your file, Agent Gibbs. 'By the book' isn't really in your repertoire, hmm? Things must be pretty far off right now, to concern Director Vance enough that you've ended up here, wouldn't they?" Jethro decided that didn't really require an answer. "You were close to Director Shepard, weren't you?" the psychiatrist continued. "THAT wasn't rhetorical," she informed him when he didn't answer after a few moments.

"Yeah," he finally replied with an air of impatience.

"How long had you two known each other?"

"How many questions are you going to ask that you already know the answer to?"

"As many as it takes to fill our hour together," she replied.

"Half-hour," he corrected.

"Hour. I cancelled my next appointment. So, Agent Gibbs, how long did you and Director Shepard know each other?"

"Eight years."

"How did you meet?"

"We were working together. Partners."

"How long did the assignment last?"

" 'Bout a year."

"The director was killed by one of your targets, yes?"

He sighed, looking away and cursing Vance for giving the shrink free access to the mostly-classified case file. "Yeah."

"You had no knowledge that the woman was still alive, or that she was coming after you."

"No."

"Do you blame yourself for the Director's death?"

He had to force his mouth to stay closed, giving his brain a chance to catch up. "My team was supposed to be protecting her," he carefully answered.

"You weren't there," she pointed out. "You just told me you didn't even know she was in danger. How was it your fault?"

"She was my responsibility," was all he answered.

Dr. Waverly made a few notes on her pad of paper. "I want to ask you a few questions about your first wife." She could instantly see his shoulders tense and his jaw clench. "You don't like speaking about her," she easily deduced. "Do you also feel responsible for her death?"

"I…I wasn't there to protect her."

"Like the Director. There is a limit, Agent Gibbs, to what any of us is capable of doing to protect the ones we care about."

He slowly shook his head. "I didn't do enough."

"For who?"

"Either of them."

* * *

Predictably, Gibbs was not in a very good mood when he got back to his office an hour later. The volume level in the bullpen dropped noticeably when he exited the elevator. The other three members of his team seemed especially busy with their computers, though each snuck glances in his direction as he headed for his desk.

A box was waiting for him, with no return address listed. "Where'd this come from?" Gibbs asked. Tony, Ziva, and Tim exchanged glances, as if trying to decide who would be brave enough to answer.

"Courier dropped it off about a half-hour ago, Boss," Tony finally told him.

Jethro pulled his knife from his pocket, flicked it open, and cut the tape. The first thing on top was a note, reading WE NEED TO TALK. Underneath and protected by packing peanuts was a cell phone.

"New phone, Boss?" McGee asked as he noticed.

"Uh, yeah. Thought maybe I'd get an upgrade." Turning the device on, he discovered there was only one contact saved to the list, the number again unidentified. "I want an update on the case when I get back," he told his team before heading to the elevator.

Once he was stopped between floors, he dialed the number and waited for someone to answer. "Jen?" he asked when he heard the call connect.

"It's me," she answered. "I assume you got the package, then?"

"Yeah. What's going on, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Sort of."

"That's a 'yes' or 'no' question only, Jen."

"I'm fine," she repeated. "I just…something's come up that I really wasn't expecting and you need to know."

He leaned back against the elevator wall. "Okay. What is it?"

"I'm pregnant."

* * *

TBC...


	5. Unexpected News

**A/N: Thanks for all the great reviews! They are definitely a writer's crack and are very inspirational.  
**

* * *

Looking back, Gibbs wasn't sure how he managed to not drop the phone. "You're what?" he asked, certain he hadn't heard her correctly.

"Pregnant, Jethro," she repeated.

"How?" The word came out of his mouth before he could stop it, and he could picture the smirk on Jenny's face.

"Do I actually need to explain that to you?" she asked.

"No, forget I said that. 'When?' would have been a better question."

"I'm about three months along."

"You mean…that first trip?"

"Yeah."

Jethro sighed, trying to get his brain to slow down enough to process what was happening. "What, um…what are you going to do?"

"To be honest, I hadn't gotten that far, yet."

"Your life isn't exactly the most stable at the moment," he pointed out.

"Thanks for reminding me. I believe the answer to the question you REALLY want to ask is: yes, I do want this baby, but it's not that simple."

"Is there an answer I'm not aware of for the question of 'why not?'?"

There was a pause. "I'd have to go off my meds, Jethro." She could hear his quick intake of breath as the consequences of that dawned on him. "I don't think this is something we're going to solve right this second over the phone with you in an elevator. Just know that, yes, I want the baby, okay?"

"Okay. Jen?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too, Jethro. Call me when you get off of work."

* * *

It was a miracle that Gibbs didn't kill himself on the way home that evening, because his mind certainly wasn't on the road. Even with her illness constantly looming, Jenny's 'return from the dead' had given them a second chance. It was a life of secret meetings and long periods apart, but in those days they spent together at her home in Martinique…they'd gotten back Paris. And now – now she was offering him another second chance, but it would come at the cost of the first.

Could he do it? Could he ask her to give up her life for their child's? Could he condemn a little boy or girl to a life without a mother? God knew he wasn't exactly going to be winning any awards for parent of the year. Could he live up to Jenny's sacrifice and take care of their child, protect it, like he'd failed to do before? There were so many unknowns.

He pulled the cell phone out of his bag once he got home and redialed the last number. "Jen, it's me," he said when it connected, knowing she wouldn't speak first. It would blow her cover if someone else had somehow gotten a hold of the phone.

"Hey," she said; her voice sounded tired.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just…whoever called it morning sickness lied."

He winced in sympathy; he should have been with her, taking care of her. "Have you been getting sick a lot?"

"No, not a lot. Today's been the worst. So…I have no idea where to start."

Jethro smiled. "Yeah, that about sums it up. Have you talked to a doctor? What is going off your meds going to do to you?"

"The medications are slowing the progression of my symptoms. Without them and with the added stress of the pregnancy…Ducky's estimate of 3-4 years would go out the window."

"So what's the estimate become instead?"

"Two, maybe less. I probably wouldn't be here for the baby's first birthday." It unnerved him that she could say that so calmly.

"You've already accepted this, haven't you?" he asked.

"I've had a few days to start dealing with it," she confirmed. "I already knew the end was coming, Jethro. I never thought I'd get a chance to do something like this with the time I had left. I heard the baby's heartbeat when I was at the clinic. It's…so amazing, so strong. It deserves this chance."

* * *

Just because Jenny's mind was made up didn't mean that Jethro was sleeping any easier. When he arrived at work the next morning, he rode the elevator down to autopsy instead of heading for the bullpen. He was glad to see that while Ducky was already at work, Palmer wasn't.

"Ah, Jethro, what can I do for you?" he asked. "I'm afraid I haven't finished the results for our latest tenant."

Gibbs shook his head. "That's not why I'm here."

"I see. Is something wrong?"

"No, I just…I was just wondering. If Jenny…if she hadn't died, what would she have gone through?"

Ducky eyed him carefully. "Most noticeably, a progressive lack of motor coordination. Many simple tasks would become either too complex or too painful to complete. She would have likely suffered from grand mal seizures and perhaps a loss of sensation in some extremities. Knowing Jenny, she probably would have pushed herself to continue life as normal until she was truly physically unable to do so. After that…" He noticed as his friend swallowed hard. "Her death was untimely, Jethro, but I truly believe she was saved from a worse fate. May I ask what prompted this inquiry?"

Gibbs shook his head. "It's nothing," he replied. "Just…thinking about some things."

"We all miss her very much," Ducky reminded his friend. "I know you're a man of few words, but if you want to talk about her…"

Gibbs nodded. "Thanks, Duck," he said before heading back out the door.

* * *

Jethro was still in a fog by the time he got up to the bullpen. Regardless of whether it was four years from now, two years from now, or two months from now, Jenny's true death would be far worse than her supposed one. There was no way to change that now. What to do with the time she had left was her call, not his.

As he sat at his desk, he felt his bag start to vibrate; one of the two phones inside was ringing. Checking both, he realized that he'd gotten a picture message on the phone from Jenny. A lump rose in his throat when he saw the grainy black and white picture she'd sent, which had obviously been taken from the sonogram during her last doctor's appointment.

The photo was titled The_new_redhead_in_your_life. jpeg

* * *

TBC...

**A/N #2: I got some comments a few stories ago about whether Gibbs would actually know how to get text (or picture) messages. Good point, but I figure if his phone is as simple as mine, when you see that you got one, you push enter. Hopefully, he can manage that, lol.  
**


	6. The Fifth Mrs Gibbs

Jethro got another trip to Martinique planned as soon as he could. The risk of raising suspicions had to be weighed against his strong need to see Jenny as soon as possible.

As they made dinner that first night, he realized he could already see a change in her. During his last visit, it had seemed like she was resigning herself to a fate of living in hiding, living mostly alone. Now, she had a purpose. He'd seen the same fire in her eyes dozens of times before when she had a job to do with him in Europe or a case was falling together at NCIS.

"What are you staring at?" Jenny asked with a slightly self-conscious smile as she set the table.

"You," he easily replied. "You look good, Jen."

"Sun and sea air will do amazing things."

"Yeah, among other things."

They talked about the team as they ate, and other things that were going on back home. Jenny was glad to hear that everyone was well and going on with their lives. Tim was indeed almost finished with his second novel, and things with Tony and Ziva had been going well, although Gibbs preferred not to know too much information about the latter situation.

"It's good to know that even your rules can be bent in certain cases," Jenny told him with a grin.

"Bent? How about hacked to pieces with a chainsaw." She started to laugh, but trailed off, pressing her palm to her forehead. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just…just feel dizzy all of a sudden."

"Go lay down; I can clean up."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, come on." He stood along with her, ready to catch her in case she blacked out. Two steps away from the table, she suddenly went limp, but he caught her before she hit the floor. A moment later, a violent seizure ran through her body.

"Hang on, Jen," he whispered as he held her hand, trying to make sure she didn't hurt herself on any of the furniture. He hated the feeling of utter helplessness that coursed through him - he was supposed to be able to take care of her! "I'm right here, just hang on…"

* * *

The next few hours of waiting around the hospital were tense. Jenny wasn't fully lucid after she regained consciousness and the doctors wanted to run several tests to make sure that both she and the baby were all right.

"The fact that you haven't had any bleeding or cramping is a good sign," the doctor told her as he got the sonogram machine ready. "I'm going to check and make sure everything looks okay."

The fuzzy black and white picture was hard to make out, but there was a noticeable spot moving in a quick rhythm – the baby's heart. Jethro kissed Jenny's forehead as they both started breathing again. "There's the little one," the doctor pointed out on the screen. "Heartbeat is steady; looks like this little boy or girl is strong."

They were left alone to wait for the rest of the test results to come back, and silence fell in the room as they were both lost in their own thoughts. "I'm sorry," Jenny finally whispered, her eyes closed.

"What for?"

"Scaring you. I was hoping I had more time before things started getting worse."

He shook his head. "I don't want your apology, Jen."

"If it ever comes to the point where you have to make a choice – "

"We're not having this conversation," he interrupted her.

"Jethro, I'm serious."

"So am I. We're not doing this. Not now, not later." His eyes were steely, and she knew she wouldn't get anywhere. "Go back to sleep; you need the rest."

"Promise you'll be here when I wake up?" she asked.

"Promise."

* * *

By morning, the doctors were convinced that Jenny was doing as well as could be expected and could return home. Jethro made sure she went straight to bed once they got back to her house, and then got lunch together for both of them, which they ate in her room.

"I'm blaming you if I end up with crumbs in my bed," she told him with a smile.

"I can live with that," he agreed.

Silence lingered for a few minutes after that. "What's going through that head of yours?" Jenny ventured to ask.

"It's nothing."

"Jethro…"

He sighed. "I was just debating how hard I'd get hit if I asked you to marry me."

Jenny was stunned speechless for a good minute. "What?" she finally choked out.

Jethro shrugged. "Well, I didn't get hit."

"Did you just ask…"

"No, I guess I'm asking if I SHOULD ask."

"No."

He looked away. "All right."

"I mean…I don't even know what I'm saying at the moment. Jethro, why are you asking?"

He shot her a Look. "Why would I be asking you to marry me?"

"Don't give me that tone," she retorted. "Considering your string of exes and our current situation, it's a damn good question. Is this just out of some sense of obligation? Because in that case the answer is definitely no, and you probably WILL get hit."

He sighed. "I don't know. If things were different…if a LOT of things were different, I probably wouldn't be asking now. But they're not different, and…I'm trying to live on your timetable, here, Jen. Is it something you would want?" The words 'before you die' hung unsaid on the end of that question.

She considered the idea for a long moment. "I don't that think I'd regret not getting married. It never seemed like we needed that – it wouldn't change anything between us. Maybe if things were different – if there was time, maybe I'd eventually want it, but…it seems like 'till death do us part' has an entirely different meaning when you know that death is coming. I don't want to just be another number on your list."

"You'd never be a number, Jen."

She smiled slightly. "Maybe not getting married says more than doing it. So no, I won't hit you for asking, but I wouldn't say yes, either."

* * *

Jethro was definitely more reluctant to leave Jenny at the end of this trip than any other, given the fact that her medical problems were starting to worsen. He was concerned about her being alone in case she had another seizure and finally made her to agree to get some help around the house so that someone could be watching out for her when he wasn't there.

"You're going to miss your flight," she told him as they stood in her doorway, their goodbye lingering on longer than normal.

"You call me if anything happens," he told her. "Promise me."

"I will. I promise. We'll be fine, Jethro, go."

"Don't even think about sending that nurse away as soon as I'm gone."

She laughed. "Damn, you caught on to my plan."

"I'm serious, Jen."

"I know you are. And I love you for it. But we'll be okay. Now hurry up and go so you can come back." He kissed her one last time before finally going and getting in the waiting taxi. It would be a long, hard wait until he was back there again.

* * *

TBC...


	7. Holidays

Almost three months had passed before Jethro could slip away for another trip to Martinique, and Jenny was noticeably showing as she stood in the doorway to her house, waiting for his cab to arrive.

"Here, feel," she told him, taking his hand and putting it over her stomach. A few seconds later, he could feel the baby kicking against his fingers.

"Oh, Jen…"

She smiled as she stood on her toes to kiss him. "Missed you."

"Missed you, too." Looking at her more critically, he could see that she was practically glowing with happiness, but very obviously tired. "C'mon, get inside. You should rest."

"I'm fine," she protested, but quickly ended up sitting on the couch anyway.

"Have you eaten?" he asked as he put his bag in her room.

"No, I was waiting for you. Just turn the stove on low to reheat it." She waved her hand toward the pan that was still sitting on one of the burners.

They had the meal together outside, watching the sunset. Jethro noticed as she struggled a few times to properly hold her fork and knife; occasional tremors ran down her arms to her fingers. He said nothing, however.

"Someone's excited you're here," Jenny commented at one point, reaching for his hand so he could feel the baby moving.

"He's strong," Jethro told her, earning him an arched eyebrow and a smirk.

"He?" she asked.

"Or she," he backtracked. "Do you know something I don't know?"

"No. I wanted it to be a surprise, as long as you're okay with that."

He shrugged. "Fine by me."

Jenny put her plate down, looking up at the stars that were appearing in the darkening sky. "It seems so stupid now," she told him.

"What does?"

"All my plans. Everything that was supposed to make me happy in life."

"You accomplished a lot, Jen."

She shrugged. "And supposedly died alone."

He took her hand. "You won't be alone."

"Is anyone suspicious of your traveling?" she asked as she looked away, changing the subject.

"Don't think so. Everyone just thinks I'm still dealing with what happened to you."

"If only they knew how close they were to the truth," she replied with a smile. He returned it.

"I don't think anyone on the team is willing to bring it up. And Leon just doesn't want to have to deal with it."

"Can't imagine who that reminds me of – a man incapable of dealing with feelings."

"Hey, I dealt with you pretty well, I think. I can't help it if you keep going and leaving me." His voice held a slight edge that indicated that was only partially a joke. Jenny squeezed his fingers.

"I'm sorry, Jethro."

They stayed in silence for a long moment before he finally replied, "This'll be the last time." The truth in that was both horrible and somewhat comforting at the same time.

"Have you thought about…after?" she asked.

"I'm still trying to get the next three months through my head, Jen."

"No meltdowns, Jethro," she told him. "Our baby's going to need you."

"Yeah, well, both of us need you," he countered.

She nodded slowly. "I'll hang on as long as I can."

* * *

Three days before Christmas, Gibbs' team caught a kidnap-murder case that required a race against time to find the second kidnapping victim before she ended up like the first. On Christmas Eve morning, a large amount of snow (which, in Washington DC meant about a foot and a half) shut down most of the city, including the airports. Holiday plans went out the window – including Jethro's plans for a surprise trip to Martinique – but at least their victim would be going home for Christmas.

"Dinner, Boss?" Tim asked as he saw Gibbs come down the stairs from Vance's office. He, Abby, Ziva, Tony, Ducky, and Palmer were crowded around two desks, sorting through the containers of Chinese food that had just been delivered.

"You actually found a place open on Christmas Eve?" he asked them.

"We've got skills," Abby told him with a smile. They all enjoyed the dinner together, laughing and talking. Once the containers were empty, Tim handed out dessert.

"The best things in life are not free," Abby read her fortune before munching on the cookie.

"Between the sheets," Tony impishly added.

"McGee," Gibbs said, nodding in DiNozzo's direction.

"Sure, Boss," Tim said before smacking his friend.

"Hey!" Tony cried, but no one had any sympathy.

"What does yours say, Gibbs?" Ziva asked, having noticed that their boss had finished opening his cookie.

He read it to himself first before speaking, "Those who have love have wealth beyond measure." Ziva sent Tony a murderous glare before he could add anything.

"Ah, true wisdom," Ducky spoke up as he read his fortune. "If you want the rainbow, you must put up with the rain."

Palmer smiled. "I like that," he told his mentor.

Gibbs got up, going to gather his coat. "Have a good night," he told the rest of the group.

"You don't want to stay a little longer?" Abby tried. They'd been trying to keep him from having to spend the holiday alone with a bottle of bourbon.

Jethro offered her a little smile. "Enjoy yourselves."

"_Lailah tov_," Ziva called to him.

"Merry Christmas," Tony and Tim added.

* * *

Once in his house, Gibbs found a bottle of bourbon, a glass, and his second cell phone. "_Joyeux Noel_," he said into the phone when Jenny answered. He could hear the smile in her voice.

"Merry Christmas," she replied. "I was wondering if you were going to call."

"I was at the office."

"On Christmas Eve? You Grinch, why didn't you let your team go earlier?"

"DC's pretty much shut down with snow at the moment; they weren't going anywhere."

She laughed. "One thing I don't miss about that city."

"Yeah…I had a present for you."

"Did you forget to ship it?"

"I also had plane tickets for this morning."

"Oh, Jethro…"

"Wanted to surprise you."

"Well, thank you, even if it didn't work out…The baby's kicking."

"Tell him or her to settle down; its mom needs some rest. How have you been doing?"

"Okay…tired," she finally admitted. "We're fine, though."

"I really wanted to be there, Jen."

"I know. You got leave in February, though, right?" He was planning on staying for a few weeks - at the least - right when the baby was born.

"Yeah. And if it snows again then, I'll drive to Richmond and fly out of there."

Jenny laughed. "Deal."

* * *

TBC...


	8. February

**A/N: Bonus! Two chapters in one day :-)**

* * *

Gibbs was literally counting the days until his next trip to Martinique. He'd dealt with secrets all his life, but it was so hard for him to know how his life was about to change forever and not be able to tell anyone. Ducky had been watching him like a specimen lately, and Gibbs was sure his friend knew SOMETHING was up, but was pretty sure he had absolutely no idea what.

Two days before the trip, Jethro headed home from work in a pretty good mood. They'd finished a case that day, and Tony would now be lead on anything that game up in the next 48 hours. He could focus on getting his things together and spending the next two weeks with Jenny and their baby. He'd been doing a lot of thinking about what came next and now just wanted her input. He was fully prepared to hand in his resignation and leave NCIS for good. They could spend whatever time she had left together, with their baby, in Martinique. After that…there was nothing really holding him to DC, other than his friends. He could find a job and raise their child anywhere.

Coming in the front door, he headed for the kitchen to grab a beer. He stopped short in front of the refrigerator when he realized that his six-pack, which had been 2/3 full the night before, was now missing a bottle. Turning, he found that it was sitting on the counter behind him – and that someone was sitting on his couch.

"You still don't know how to lock your door, Jethro," Jenny told him with a smile.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, coming into the living room. He then realized that she wasn't alone.

"There's someone who wanted to say hello to you," she said, leaning forward slightly to kiss their sleeping child's forehead. "So I decided to take a trip."

"It's a girl?" Jethro surmised from the pink blanket the newborn was swaddled in. It was difficult to talk around the lump in his throat.

"Yes, she is. A very impatient little girl who decided she didn't want to wait for her father to come and see her come into the world."

"What's her name?" he asked, his eyes shining.

Jenny smiled. "I wanted your input, so she doesn't have one yet. Do you want to hold her?"

"More than anything," he instantly replied. She gently transferred the little baby into his arms. The sudden loss of body heat roused her from sleep and she started whimpering, but Jethro held her close and she calmed down. "Hey, there, sweetheart," he whispered to the newborn. "It's good to finally meet you. I…I'm your dad." Jenny was also blinking back tears as she threaded her fingers through his hair. "Thank you," he told her, and meant it with all his heart.

She smiled. "You're welcome."

* * *

By the time Jenny and Jethro were finishing dinner, their daughter was awake and wanting her own meal. Jethro watched the tiny girl with a smile as he handed Jenny the bottle he'd just finished warming. "She looks just like you," he told her as he sat beside them on the couch.

"Oh, no," she replied, "She's got your eyes, your nose, and your temper."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, mock indignant.

"Everything's gotta be her way, and right now."

"Nothing wrong with knowing what she wants in life," Jethro replied as he ran a finger over the baby's ginger-colored peach fuzz hair. "She's healthy though?"

"As far as I know, she's perfect," Jenny assured him. "You should be getting an e-mail soon with the results of her genetic tests."

He slowly nodded. It seemed inconceivable at the moment that the week-old baby might already have a time bomb within her waiting to go off. Would she suffer the same fate as her mother and grandmother before her?

Once the little girl had finished her dinner and fallen back asleep, Jethro took her upstairs to put her to bed in the bassinet that Jenny had gotten set up. He stayed for a long moment, just watching her sleep. He'd done the same with Kelly years earlier, but had probably taken the moments for granted. What reason did he have to think that someday, he'd never again be able to just watch his little girl slumber peacefully? Now…now he knew better.

"I'm a bit rusty at this," he whispered to the baby. "It's been a long time. But know that I'm going to take care of you, little one. I'm going to keep you safe. Whatever it takes…I messed up at that before, but it won't happen again. You're going to grow up beautiful and strong, like your big sister was. And I'm not going to fail you like I failed her."

* * *

He was on his way back to the stairs when he heard a crash of shattering glass downstairs. "Jenny?" he called as he came down the steps two at a time. She was sitting on the floor by the kitchen counter surrounded by the fragments of her drinking glass.

"I'm sorry," she said, her hands fidgeting with the shattered pieces. Jethro tried not to step on any while joining her. "I'm such a klutz; I tripped, and…"

"It's okay," he quickly replied. "It's just a stupid glass. Are you hurt?"

"N-no, I'm okay."

"Come on, get up and I'll clean all this up."

He heard her breath hitch, heard the tears in her voice when she responded, "I can't."

Gibbs carefully knelt beside her. "What do you mean you can't?" She didn't – wouldn't – answer. "Jenny, look at me."

Her cheeks were tearstained as she finally raised her head to meet his eyes. "It…it'll pass in a minute, but I-I can't get up."

"You can't stand?" he asked, and she shook her head. "You didn't trip, did you?" he realized.

"No," she finally admitted. As he reached for her arm to wrap it over his shoulders, he realized that she wasn't fidgeting on purpose, but rather couldn't control the tremors running to her hands. Ever so gently, he lifted her into his arms and carried her to the couch.

"What's going on, Jen?" he asked as he quickly checked her over to make sure she really hadn't been cut by the glass. She could barely keep her eyes open, and it suddenly dawned on him that he knew what was behind an expression like the one she was currently wearing. "You're in pain?" he asked, although it was more of a statement than a question.

"Pain means I'm still alive," she quietly replied. "It'll pass."

"Is there something you can take?" he asked. Would a couple aspirin actually do anything for her at this point?

Jenny shook her head, gripping his hand in hers with strength that came from nowhere. "I think I was being optimistic when I was worrying about not seeing our daughter's first birthday," she finally said.

He'd known. His infamous gut had told him that something was seriously wrong the moment he'd seen her on his couch that afternoon. But he'd hoped against hope that he was wrong and that they could enjoy their child like anyone else. "What about medications?" he quietly asked.

"I'm not responding to them."

"It's only been a week," he shot back, horrified to hear his voice break. "Why didn't you call me when you went into labor?" Another question he already knew the answer to.

"Because I wasn't conscious," she replied. "I had a seizure, stopped breathing…I didn't wake up for two days."

An image of her lying lifeless – helpless – on a hospital bed came unbidden to his mind. "I would have been there."

Jenny tried to smile. "I know. But…it wouldn't have changed the outcome. It's too late, Jethro. We just ran out of time. I wanted to be here, with you. I wanted to spend my last days with you in our 'old life' together."

* * *

Gibbs was planning on spending no more than fifteen minutes at NCIS the following morning. Just enough time to talk to Vance and talk to his team, and then he could pick up breakfast for Jenny on the way back home.

"I need to leave today for my time off," he told his boss as he came into his office.

Vance frowned. "Is something the matter?"

"It's personal," was all he answered. Vance put down his files, leaning back in his chair.

"I know you've been dealing with a lot lately, Special Agent Gibbs, but frankly I'm becoming concerned."

"I do my business on my own time, Leon. There's nothing for you to be concerned about."

He contemplated that. "Where can you be reached while you're gone?"

"I don't want to be reached while I'm gone," he shot back. "That's the point of a vacation."

"Rule 5, isn't it?"

"Three, actually, but that doesn't change anything."

"Agent Gibbs – "

"Leon, I can go type up a resignation, if you prefer. I'm taking leave as of today. I'll let you know when I'll be back once I know. Is that gonna work for you or not?"

He finally had to nod. "Get yourself sorted out, Jethro. Next time we have this conversation, I'll be choosing the letter."

* * *

TBC...


	9. Internal Investigation

All the team knew was that their boss was disappearing – again – and that they didn't know where – again – and that this time they'd been told not to try calling him unless there was another 9/11. Cynthia generally wasn't one to gossip, but had heard the word 'resignation' through the director's door and THAT had gotten her concerned enough to approach Gibbs' team.

"McGee, can you track where he's been going on his vacations?" Tony asked when he, Ziva, and Tim joined Abby in her lab the following day to discuss the latest happenings.

"He hasn't had any plane, train, or bus tickets charged to his credit cards in the last year," Abby spoke up, and everyone's heads swiveled around to look at her. "What?" she asked. "I was worried!"

"He had a ticket stub on his desk after his last vacation," Ziva pointed out. "He sleeved it when he realized that I had seen it."

"Pocketed," Tony corrected her. "So we know he actually has gone someplace other than his house. Can you guys," Tim and Abby, "Figure out where?"

She smiled. "Us? Of course!"

* * *

By lunchtime when the group reconvened, they had figured out that Gibbs' trips had all been to Martinique, but had no idea why. "Is he there now?" Tony asked McGee as they puzzled things out.

"I don't think so. There's no evidence he's traveled at all in the past 48 hours."

"You have checked all carriers going to the island?" Ziva asked.

"Yes."

"There was, however," Abby cut in, "Something interesting LEAVING Martinique."

"Don't make me guess, Abs," Tony told her.

"A US government plane. Left from National, refueled once on the way, stopped on the island for barely more than a half-hour and then came back."

"When?"

"Arrived in Washington the day before yesterday," Tim reported after looking at the record. "The orders for the flight came straight from SecNav. But since when does the brass get anything done in less than 30 minutes?"

"Maybe they were dropping something or someone off?" Ziva suggested.

"Or picking someone up," Tony added. "Anybody think that this is a coincidence?"

"We don't believe in coincidences," Tim pointed out with a smile.

"Exactly. We need surveillance photos of who or what got on or off that plane here or in Martinique."

"On it!" Abby proclaimed.

Tim nodded. "On it," he echoed.

* * *

When a case came in that afternoon, they all got sidetracked with actual work, but met the following evening to get back to their own personal case.

"Found a photo," Abby reported as the rest of the team came into her lab. "Barely. I can't see a face, but I can tell you it's a woman and she has red hair."

"Any idea who she is or where she went?" Tony asked.

"Who she is, no. Where she went, yes. It took a little digging, but I found the car company she used. The driver remembered the run and had an address." She proudly brandished a piece of paper with the information written on it.

"That is Gibbs' house," Ziva was the first to realize.

"That it is," Abby agreed.

* * *

A half-hour later, the foursome was sitting in the NCIS sedan across the street from Gibbs' house, trying to figure out what they were supposed to do next. Considering they'd been told in no uncertain terms that they weren't supposed to disturb their boss, they knew a visit at home wouldn't be taken well. However, his behavior had them worried, especially if it was all about some woman. Work had always come first for Gibbs – which was probably what had cost him three wives.

"Okay…rock paper scissors," Tony suggested when another minute or so passed and no one moved. He received three glares. "Somebody's gotta go knock," he explained.

"We are all going, Tony," Ziva told him, getting out of the car. The others all followed suit.

"Yeah," he agreed, "But someone's fist actually has to make contact with the door. Someone's gotta be standing closest to it when Gibbs opens it."

"Were you volunteering?" Abby asked.

"Hell no!"

By the time they got to the front door, they'd worked out that Abby should be the one to knock, as she was the least likely to incur Gibbs' wrath. Tony and Ziva had used up their favor with him when they started sleeping together – and that was assuming Tony had any to begin with.

The four collectively took a step backwards the moment the door opened; Tony almost fell off the stairs when he failed to take into account how close the edge was. "What's going on?" Gibbs asked.

There was a long moment of silence as Tony poked Ziva, prompting her to speak; she in turn poked Tim, and he poked Abby. "Ow!" the Goth cried. "Oh, um, Gibbs, you totally have the right to slam the door in our faces if you want, but we were worried about you and we just wanted to make sure you're okay. Are you okay?"

He was about to answer – and probably tear them all new ones – when a sound from inside the house floated out through the door. A baby's cry. "What was that?" Tony asked.

"All of you, leave, now," Gibbs growled at them, and was about to close the door when a hand landed on his shoulder. The four on the front steps gaped, stunned absolutely speechless, as Jenny joined him in the doorway, holding their daughter in her arms.

"It's okay, Jethro," she told him. "They can know the truth."

* * *

TBC...


	10. Revelations

Seeing that Jenny wasn't exactly steady on her feet, Jethro quickly took the baby. "You're supposed to be resting," he told her. "Go, couch, now."

She shot the team an apologetic smile before following orders. Fighting with him wouldn't have been worth it; the last thing she needed was to go ahead and collapse and prove him right. "Let them in, Jethro," she called back over her shoulder as she headed for the living room.

After getting settled on the couch, Jenny took her daughter back as the stunned foursome all filed into the room. "I'm sure you have many questions," she told them.

"You-you're alive?" Abby had to state the obvious. "And you knew!" she accused Gibbs.

"I was put in protective custody after the shooting," Jenny explained. "By the time I'd recovered, I was already out of the country and officially dead."

"Why did you not come back?" Ziva asked her friend. Gibbs took Jenny's hand.

"Because I knew that it wouldn't be long before I was actually dead," she replied.

Everyone shared looks. "What are you talking about?" Tony asked.

"I knew for several months before the shooting that I was sick. My mother died of the same disease. I didn't want you all to lose me twice. Jethro…it was selfish, but I had to tell him the truth."

"How long do you have?" Ziva asked.

"Not long. I'm just glad I'm not leaving him alone." Almost as though she knew she was being talked about, the baby yawned and made a few noises. Jethro let her hold his finger.

"This…this is unbelievable," Tim commented when no one else could get their mouths to work.

"She was an unexpected surprise," Jenny told them with a smile, "But a welcome one."

"Does she have a name?" Abby asked, stepping forward to get a look at the baby.

"We're still working on that part. Any suggestions?"

Abby shrugged. "I've always liked Abigail."

Jenny smiled. "We'll take that under advisement. I want my daughter to know all of you," Jenny told them. "I want you to be part of her life. She may not have many relatives, but she certainly has a family – as do I."

"Were you going to tell us?" Tony asked Gibbs.

"Originally, I was planning on retiring and staying with Jenny and the baby in Martinique until… After that, maybe I would have, if I'd come back to the area. Kinda been taking things one day at a time."

"After I came back to DC," Jenny added, "I thought a lot about whether to call all of you, to see you one more time. I didn't think it would be fair to you, just to make me feel better."

Ziva knelt at her friend's side, taking her hand. "It wouldn't have been fair to us not to."

* * *

Ducky came by that evening after being called by Jethro, since he'd missed everyone else's visit. The front door had been left open, and Jenny returned the doctor's smile when he came into the living room and saw her sitting on the couch. "Oh, my dear, you are a sight for sore eyes," he told her as he hugged her.

Jenny laughed. "You're a wonderful liar, Ducky. I'm sure I look terrible."

"But the point is that I'm seeing you at all, hmm?"

"True…How much did Jethro tell you?"

"That you were here, alive, and had been in protective custody. I'm afraid I'm a bit confused other than that. What should he have told me?"

Jenny smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "That's only the beginning of the story."

"Where were you hidden away?"

"Martinique. I told Jethro the truth as soon as I could. He visited me whenever he was able to get away."

"I see. Please don't think I'm complaining, but why are you here, now, after so many months?"

Jenny smiled. "To bring Jethro our daughter."

Ducky's eyes went large. "What?"

She nodded. "He just took her up to put her to bed. She's about a week and a half old and has her father firmly around her little finger."

He chuckled. "Well, I'd expect nothing less." The pieces were starting to fall together for the doctor. "You carried her to term?"

"Not quite. Thirty-six weeks."

"And you stopped your medications?"

"I had to, to keep her alive. There were some…complications, though."

Ducky took her hand. "Oh, my dear. Now I understand."

She tried to smile, despite the tears welling in her eyes. "I wanted to thank you, Ducky."

"For what?"

"Your discretion, when I began showing symptoms. For your friendship, to me and to Jethro."

"You don't have to thank me for that," he dismissed it.

"You'll look after him?" she asked.

Ducky nodded. "Of course."

"Do you want to see the baby?"

"Will I wake her?"

She smiled. "No, she'll sleep through almost anything. She'd make a horrible agent."

He laughed. "Oh, there's time yet to train her."

* * *

By the time Ducky left, Jenny was beyond the point of being able to walk up the stairs, so Jethro carried her to his bedroom. Sitting beside her on the bed, he gently tried to massage her uncooperative legs while she stared out the window at the moonlit sky.

"Did you finish the boat?" she absentmindedly asked him.

"Which one?" he replied with a smirk.

"Is your basement empty at the moment? Besides your secret project, of course." He'd stopped Jenny from going down there soon after she'd arrived. At first, he'd claimed that she shouldn't risk falling on the stairs, but when she didn't buy that, he'd been forced to reveal that he had a surprise for her that wasn't quite finished.

Jethro shook his head. "Nope."

"Is this boat number five or number six?"

"Six."

"Should I ask what happened to number five? Since I can see you didn't 'break the bottle' yet."

He smiled. "Nope."

She stared at the bassinet in the corner where their daughter was sleeping. "Teach her how to build," she requested after a long moment. "And at some point, get the boat out. I think she'd like sailing with her daddy."

"Yes, ma'am."

A thin wail from the corner let them know that the baby was awake. Jethro got her and put her in Jenny's arms while he went to get a bottle.

"She really needs a name," she told him as he returned. "I feel like she's going to hate us when she gets older and learns how long it took."

"I've heard of much worse. And she caught us a little off-guard."

"Still."

"Well, I was always horrible at names; Shannon hated everything I suggested."

Jenny smiled. "My only rules are: nothing too crazy and nothing that starts with a J."

"My only rule is that she can't share a name with someone I've divorced."

She laughed. "Fair enough. What have you been thinking of?"

"I don't know. Nothing I was considering a couple weeks ago seems to fit her. Except…"

"Except what? You don't have a shy bone in your body, Jethro; spit it out."

He laughed. "Maybe Hannah?"

Jenny smiled. "I actually like that."

That earned her a Look. "You don't have to sound so surprised, you know."

"You're the one who was giving disclaimers a minute ago," she retorted. "Do you know what it means?"

"Grace of God."

"Well, she is our little miracle. What do you think, sweetheart?" she asked the baby. "Do you like Hannah? You want that to be your name?" The tiny girl yawned.

"I don't think that was a no exactly…" Jethro commented. Jenny laughed.

"No, I guess not. Hannah Gibbs," she tried it out. "It fits her."

"Not Shepard-Gibbs?" he asked.

"I'll leave that up to you," she decided. It was very likely that he'd have to be the one to eventually get everything worked out with the baby's citizenship and name. "I was never a fan of hyphenated names, though."

Hannah wriggled slightly in her mother's grasp, and Jenny realized that her hands were shaking. "Um, can you take her?" she quietly asked. "I-I'm getting tired." Inwardly, she cursed her body for not even allowing her to enjoy the little time she had left with her family.

Jethro knew what was going on, but didn't comment. Gently cradling their little girl, he sat beside Jenny on the bed so that she could still see her. "I got an e-mail from your doctor today," he quietly said as the baby settled and started to go back to sleep.

Jenny anxiously looked up at him. "What did he say?" Her greatest fear in going through with the pregnancy was that she'd condemn her daughter to the same fate she was suffering.

Jethro met her gaze. "She's healthy."

Tears welled in Jenny's eyes. "She won't get sick, too?" He shook his head. "Oh, thank God…"

"She's going to have a full life, Jen. She's gonna be happy."

A smile crossed her face. "That makes it all worth it."

* * *

TBC...

**A/N: Thanks again for all of the reviews I've been getting. They totally make my day. And for anyone who hates the name: sorry!**


	11. Surprises

Over the next few days, most members of the team ended up stopping by Gibbs' house during lunch breaks or after work. They all seemed torn between a desire to see Jenny as much as they could and a desire to let her be with her family.

Ziva visited most often. Jenny could tell that the young woman was struggling with her inability to control the situation. It was no wonder that she and Gibbs got along. The two friends talked about many things, including Ziva's relationship with Tony. Jenny was glad her friend was happy.

"I like Hannah," Abby commented on their choice of a name for their daughter when she came over. "She looks like a Hannah."

"We thought so," Jenny told her with a smile as she held the baby. They were sitting on the couch together.

"You could still make Abigail her middle name," the Goth suggested.

"Give it up, Abs," Jethro told her as he headed down to the basement.

"He's got some secret down there that I'm not allowed to see," Jenny explained.

"Did you try guessing what it is?"

She shook her head. "He wasn't willing to play that game."

Abby laughed. "Yeah, he never wants to play it with me either." Her attention drifted back to Hannah as the baby made a few noises, and her smile widened. "I'm still in awe that she exists. And that you're here."

"Yeah, I'm in awe of her myself," Jenny replied.

"Can I hold her? I promise I'll be careful and I'll just sit right here."

Jenny laughed. "Yeah, you can. Just watch her head," she warned as she shifted her daughter into her friend's arms. Hannah looked up at her with wide eyes.

"Hey, there, munchkin," Abby told her. "You are so incredibly cute. I bet you've heard that a lot already, huh? You have the tiniest little hands and fingers…"

Jenny sat back, watching with a smile as the younger woman rambled on for a few minutes. "Don't ever change, Abby," she finally said, making her look up in surprise. "No matter what anyone else says. You are extraordinarily unique and have a gentle soul. I can only hope that she," Hannah, "Is as comfortable with herself as you are."

Abby was speechless for a moment, and found herself blinking back tears. "Thank you," she finally choked out. "We…we really missed you, Jenny. And we're going to again…I hate that Hannah's not going to get to know you. But don't worry – we'll tell her everything, okay? She'll know all the stories and she'll love you as much as we do."

"Thank you," Jenny quietly replied. "I keep trying to picture her growing up with all of you around. I know she'll be okay, and she'll be loved."

* * *

Tim came by the following day at lunch and brought a gift – the softest little teddy bear Jenny had ever felt. He was mostly quiet, asking a few questions and only really managing to smile when he was holding Hannah. Jenny wasn't sure how to make things easier for him, or any of the others.

Ducky stopped in that evening, partially as just a friendly visit and partially as a house call. "How well have you been able to move around?" he asked as he examined her.

"The stairs are out," she quietly answered. "I've stopped holding Hannah while walking; it's too dangerous."

He nodded. "Did the pills I gave you help any with the pain?"

"Dulled it enough to sleep. I slept about 14 hours last night, actually. Jethro got to have feeding and diaper duty for the night."

Ducky laughed. "Good practice for him, I'm sure."

Jenny smiled. "He's so good with her. I mean…I know I'm the only one who's new at this, but…I just love watching them together. She gets this look on her face like she knows. She knows he's her dad and he's going to love her no matter what and she is totally secure in his arms."

"She will never doubt his love for her," Ducky agreed.

They both looked up as they heard Jethro coming up the stairs from the basement. "Jen, close your eyes," he told her.

"Jethro…"

"I'm serious. Close 'em, or you won't get your surprise." She sighed and rolled her eyes, but obliged. Ducky watched with an amused smile as his friend lugged a wooden object into the room. "Okay, I know this is a bit early," he explained. "But I got the idea to start working on it at Christmas. Thought maybe it could be a present for Hannah this Christmas. Anyway…open your eyes."

Jenny did, and a smile crossed her face as she saw what he'd done. Sitting in the middle of the room was a small wooden rocking horse that he'd made himself. "Oh, Jethro…"

"What do you think?"

"It's perfect. She'll love it."

"You did an excellent job, Jethro," Ducky agreed.

"I can picture her playing on it," Jenny told him, her smile turning a little sad. "Thank you, this was a wonderful surprise."

* * *

As Ducky was leaving, he pulled Jethro aside. "I received a copy of the test results Jennifer's doctor did on Hannah," he told his friend.

Jethro frowned. "Yeah, they said everything was fine with her; she doesn't carry the gene." He didn't like the fact that his friend seemed anxious, nervously fiddling with his hat. "Were they wrong?"

"No, no! Hannah's fine, thank goodness. More than that, though, she may be able to help her mother."

That got Gibbs' attention. "How?"

"I didn't bring this up earlier because I didn't want to raise false hope. But when I saw on the report that Hannah and Jennifer were matched for certain protein tests, I started to do more research."

"Get to the point, Duck."

"The cells from Hannah's cord blood could be used in an attempt to regenerate the damaged cells in Jenny's brain. I've spoken with an old friend at Johns Hopkins; the treatment is still experimental, but promising."

Jethro was reeling. "Hannah could save her?"

"It's possible, yes. There's no way of knowing now how effective the treatment would be. There's a possibility it may have no effect, or perhaps it could give her another few years…or perhaps she'd live to be 100."

"We have to try, Duck."

"Agreed. My only remaining concern was whether we had enough time left to do the treatment at all; that's why I wanted to examine her."

"And?"

Ducky smiled. "I'll call Dr. Chen when I get home. You could meet with her tomorrow."

Once Ducky was gone, Jethro got the job of breaking the news to Jenny. Hannah was awake and wanting her dinner; he watched the two of them together for a long moment.

"What did Ducky want to say about me that I couldn't hear?" Jenny asked after the silence had lingered on for a bit.

"We weren't just talking about you," Jethro explained. "It was Hannah, too."

Jenny looked up, concern clear on her face. "Is everything all right? I had my doctor forward her test results to him."

"Yeah, he got them. That's why he wanted to talk. She's fine," he added before she could get any more worried, "And in fact, she may be a miracle in more ways than one."

* * *

TBC...

**A/N: Is that good enough for a possible miracle? I agonized for days over what direction to take this in, and did write out several chapters going down another path, but then came back and decided to take this road instead. As always, feedback is appreciated.**


	12. Last Hope

Dr. Leah Chen didn't generally make house calls, but from what she'd learned from her friend, this wasn't going to be just any patient. When she came over to Gibbs' house the following afternoon, she did a quick examination of her own before beginning to explain the procedure, the risks, and what she expected as a benefit.

"I prefer to be conservative at this point, until we see some results. We're running a race right now – I want to get the cell implantation done before your condition deteriorates, otherwise you may not have the strength to recover. There are still some tests we need to get done and I want to get you admitted to the hospital to minimize your chances of picking up any kind of infection. Do you have any questions?"

"I think my brain is still trying to catch up," Jenny admitted.

Dr. Chen smiled. "I'll have everything set up so that you can be admitted in the morning. From there, your test results will dictate the schedule."

"Thank you so much," she told the doctor, who smiled.

"I just want to get you home to that little girl of yours."

Things were mostly quiet around the house after she left. Jethro worked on dinner while Jenny watched from her spot at the table. "Am I the only one who's terrified right now?" she quietly asked.

"Nope."

"I keep thinking…if I hadn't come back here, if the others hadn't found out that I was still alive…we wouldn't have this chance."

"Rule 15," he pointed out.

Jenny smiled. "Yeah, I guess so. Sometimes the team includes more people than you think it does. I thought this was just about us – about us and Hannah – but our family is larger than that…I-I've been trying so hard for the past few days and weeks and months to get myself ready, to accept what I was losing...But I don't know if I can do it twice."

Jethro held her gaze. "Then I guess this better work, huh?" he replied. Silence fell for a long moment. "I've been trying to accept things, too, Jen. And I'm not ready to lose you. Won't ever be."

She nodded slowly. "Then I guess this better work," she echoed.

* * *

The tests all went according to plan and Dr. Chen was ready to do the procedure two days later. Jethro had told his team to keep working on their cases – he'd give them updates once there was something to report – but he wasn't entirely surprised to see them all trickle into the waiting room one by one throughout the morning.

"Here, Boss," Tony said, offering Gibbs a cup of coffee – his third so far that day.

"Thanks."

The younger man retook his seat beside Ziva. "How are you holding up?" he asked his girlfriend.

"I think I am numb," she murmured s she laid her head on his shoulder. "I cannot believe that this is real."

"She's gonna pull through," Tony assured her. "Got too many people here that need her."

It was early afternoon before Dr. Chen came out into the waiting area. "We're moving her into recovery," she told the whole anxious group. "Everything went well, now we just have to see what the results are."

"Can we wait with her?" Jethro asked.

"Two at a time."

* * *

They, of course, broke that rule right off the bat, since Jethro took Hannah in with him and Ziva. He just stood there for a moment watching her sleep; thanks to the anesthesia, Jenny was supposed to be out for a little while.

Hannah started to whimper, and Jethro put her at Jenny's side. Immediately, she calmed down. "Nobody fixes things like Mommy, huh?" he whispered to the tiny girl. "She's good at cleaning up my messes, too."

They sat in silence for a while; Hannah eventually fell back to sleep. Ziva looked up at a light knock on the door and saw Tony and Tim in the hall. Both men pointed to their cell phones – they'd gotten a call from work. "We'll be back, Gibbs," she told him. "Vance called."

He nodded. "We'll be here."

* * *

The next time Hannah woke up, she was hungry. Jethro stood by the window with her, holding her bottle. It had started snowing lightly outside, a rarity for March in DC.

"Well, kiddo, this is your first taste of snow," he told Hannah. "What do you think? It's pretty fun stuff, usually. Living around here, it'll only take a little bit to get you out of school. And then you can go sledding or ice skating or build a snowman…Your sister never really got to see snow; we lived a long way away from here. But one year, her mom and I took her skiing. Maybe…maybe your mom and I will get to take you skiing at some point, too. There are a lot of maybes right now that she needs to hold on for…"

Ducky slipped in the room and smiled at his friend. "How's she doing?" he asked.

"Still giving me the silent treatment," Jethro replied as he retook his seat beside the bed.

Ducky chuckled. "What have you done to land yourself in the doghouse this time?"

"As if I ever know the answer to that question."

"Mmm. How has little Hannah been doing?"

"As long as someone's holding her and someone keeps feeding her, she's happy as can be."

"If only everyone's problems could be fixed so simply."

Jethro looked up as he realized that Jenny's hand had moved. "Jen?"

A moment later, her eyes fluttered open. "Hey," she barely managed to whisper.

"Hey. I'm right here."

"It's done?" she asked, already losing the battle with consciousness.

"Yeah, Jen. Everything went okay." Her eyes slid shut, and didn't reopen. "Please, just be okay…"

* * *

Jenny stayed asleep the rest of the night and most of the following morning. By lunchtime, Dr. Chen was getting concerned by how hard it was to awaken her.

"She's only staying conscious for a few minutes at a time," she told Ducky when he stopped by. "Her white cell count is elevated – either she's picked up an infection or…"

"Or she's rejecting the treatment," he finished.

"We're starting her on antibiotics. Hopefully, she just has a minor infection and can hold on long enough for the treatment to start working."

* * *

TBC...

**A/N: Had to throw in one more moment of suspense. Only a couple chapters left to go!**


	13. Waking Up

Jethro hadn't left Jenny's side the whole night, and looked up when he saw his friend entering the room. "Hey, Duck."

"I can stay with her if you need a break, Jethro."

He shook his head. "I'm not leaving her."

"Where's Hannah?"

"With Ziva."

Ducky chuckled, surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah, that was my reaction, too. The kid just latched onto her, though. And possibly more amazing is how good Ziva is with her."

"Wonders never cease. Why don't you check in with them, get yourself something to eat?"

After a moment's hesitation, he finally rose from his seat and gave Jenny a kiss on the forehead before leaving. "Thanks, Ducky," he told his friend as he headed out the door.

Ducky took Jethro's place at Jenny's bedside, holding her hand in both of his. He could picture her as she'd been the last time he'd visited at Jethro's house: so close to death and yet so full of life with her family. Now…looking at her lying motionless on the bed was a completely different story. "Oh, my dear…I'm so terribly sorry if I've put you through all of this for nothing."

"Jethro?" Jenny whispered as she woke up, her eyes still closed.

"He just left, Jennifer."

Slowly, her eyes opened and she took in who was beside her. "Hello, Ducky."

"Good morning. How are you feeling?"

"Tired."

"Yes, well, your body is working very hard at the moment."

Her eyes fluttered shut again, and he thought she'd gone back to sleep, but she spoke up once more. "I want Hannah."

"She's fine. She's with Ziva."

Jenny shook her head. "I want to see her…Please."

* * *

Ducky conveyed the message, but Jenny remained asleep for the rest of the day. Around midnight, she woke up for just long enough for the doctors to do some assessment of the treatment's impact (or lack thereof) but that was about it. It was the following afternoon before she was conscious again, and she smiled to see Jethro with Hannah in a chair by the bed.

"Hi," she whispered to him.

"Hey. Someone was wondering when you were going to get around to waking up," Jethro commented as he put Hannah down beside her.

"Hi, sweetheart," Jenny told her daughter, kissing her forehead. "I love you so much. Always remember that."

"Jen, don't go there," he told her.

"Every time I go to sleep…I have no idea whether I'm going to wake up again," she replied. "I don't want…I don't want there to be anything unsaid."

"You're going to be fine. You just have to keep fighting a little longer."

"I'm trying. But I'm so tired…I'm sorry, Jethro."

"For what?"

"Leaving you in Paris. It made sense at the time, but now…" she trailed off. "Tell her about us."

He looked away. "Stop it, Jen."

"Tell her how much we loved her, and wanted her."

"I am not having this conversation with you! Not now!" How could she just give up like this?

Hannah started wailing, frightened by the loud voice. Jenny cuddled her close, trying to soothe her. "I'm sorry," Jethro quietly said. "I thought…I was trying not to let myself think about what happened if this didn't work."

"I know." Her eyes suddenly drifted closed. "Jethro, take her."

"What's wrong?" he questioned, standing and reaching for Hannah nonetheless. A moment later, Jenny started seizing. The baby began crying once more as different alarms on the machines began to blare. Nurses and doctors started running into the room, yelling orders, but Jethro wasn't processing any of it. All he could do was stand and watch, holding his daughter and praying this wasn't the end.

* * *

The seizure lasted four minutes, definitely longer than normal. She'd stopped breathing for part of the time, and the doctors were concerned about the effects of the lack of oxygen – assuming Jenny even woke up again. At that point, no one could be certain what would happen.

Jethro sat in a chair beside the bed, holding Hannah and waiting. The baby had decided she wasn't going back to sleep without a fight – almost as if she was afraid of what she'd miss. "Your mom loves you very much," he whispered to her at one point. "And so do I. Because she was right – you're our miracle…even if we lose her."

There was a light knock on the doorframe, and he looked up to see Tony and Ziva. "I thought we would take her back to your place and get her fed," the Israeli explained their presence. Jethro nodded.

"Thank you."

"Any change?" Tony asked.

Jethro shook his head. "No." He got Hannah settled in her carrier and handed it to Ziva. "How'd you rope him into helping?" he asked, indicating Tony.

She smiled. "It was not easy, but you probably do not want to know the details."

He nodded. "Got it. Thank you, both of you."

"No problem, Boss," Tony told him.

* * *

Jethro occasionally dozed off for short periods throughout the night, but was plagued by nightmares. With a cup of coffee at his side, he tried to stay awake and keep watch. "I shouldn't have taken no for an answer in Paris," he quietly mused at one point a few hours before dawn. "Although who knows? Maybe YOU would have been ex-wife number three if that were the case."

"Thought you said I'd never be a number," she weakly replied. He looked up to see that she was watching him through halfway-closed eyes.

"Hey," he whispered, sitting forward. "You gave us a hell of a scare. How do you feel?" She thought about that, and he could see surprise register on her face. "What is it?"

"The pain's gone."

"What?"

She tested moving her arms, flexing her fingers. "I…it doesn't hurt anymore. It doesn't hurt to move." He reached for the call button. A nurse showed up in the doorway a few moments later.

"Ah, she's awake again," the woman observed with a smile.

"Can you get Dr. Chen?" Jethro asked her.

"She went home for the night, Sir."

"Trust me; she's going to want to see this herself."

* * *

By the time that the doctor arrived at the hospital, Jenny was still awake (the longest she'd stayed conscious in days) and was trying to eat some of the breakfast that had been brought. Dr. Chen was amazed by the quick turn around.

"Your fever is gone," she commented as she looked at the printouts. "And you're really not feeling any pain?"

"I could try getting up and moving around…" Jenny suggested.

"How about we hold off on that?" Dr. Chen replied with a laugh. "I want to get a couple scans done today. We'll see how you're feeling tomorrow and then talk about you getting up and about. This is incredibly positive, though. I'll be back to check up on you in a little bit."

Jenny smiled at Jethro once the doctor was gone. "Where's Hannah?"

"With Ziva and Tony. Do you want me to go get her? I can let them know what's going on." She nodded. "Ducky's supposed to be getting here soon; he'll stay with you until I get back."

She smiled. "Go, I'll be fine."

He kissed her before turning to go. "You say that now and I actually dare to believe it."

* * *

TBC...

Only one more chapter to go!


	14. Epilogue

Gibbs looked up from his desk as he heard the elevator announce its arrival on the floor with a ding. The two most important people in his life stepped off into the bullpen. "Dada!" Hannah squealed as she saw him.

"Hey, Hannie," he told her as he took the toddler from her mother. "I bet you've been having a much more fun day than I have."

"Case going cold?" Jenny asked him.

"About one degree above freezing," he replied. "Waiting for DiNozzo and McGee to get back and then we can go."

Hannah wiggled around enough that Jethro put her down and she started toddling around the bullpen. Walking was a skill she'd only just started to get the hang of, so she clung to the furniture as she made her way toward her goal.

Ziva smiled as she saw the tiny redhead approach her desk. "Hello, Hannah."

"Zee!" she cried with a giggle, reaching to get picked up. Ziva obliged, laughing.

"Oh, you are far too aware of how cute you are," she told the little girl.

Knowing that Hannah was safe, Jenny turned her attention to Jethro. "Hey," she told him, giving him a quick kiss.

"Hi, yourself. She running you ragged today?"

"Mmm. Some days, I think keeping track of you here was easier than keeping track of her." Jenny had been staying home with Hannah full time since her recovery, wanting to take advantage of the time she'd been given with their little girl.

Jethro smiled. "I've trained her well, then."

The elevator dinged again and Abby got off, her grin widening when she saw Hannah. "There's the birthday girl!" she exclaimed. "I've got a surprise for you, munchkin." From behind her back, she produced a little plate with a cupcake. Hannah clapped with delight.

"Are you trying to sugar up my kid, Abs?" Jethro asked her.

"Well...yes, but it's for a good cause! You only get a birthday once a year."

Tony and Tim stepped off the elevator as it arrived. "Ooh, birthday celebration?" DiNozzo asked when he saw the cupcake.

"Yep."

"I think you forgot something…" He went to his desk and pulled out a small candle.

"Tony, you're awesome," Abby told him.

Jenny and Jethro joined the rest of the group; he got out his lighter to do the honors. "Happy Birthday, Hannah," he told his daughter as the small flame began to burn. Everyone else echoed the statement.

"Now you have to blow out the candle," Abby tried to coach her, but the toddler was having none of it. She reached straight for the still-lit treat, and Ziva barely managed to catch her hand in time. Jenny blew out the candle for her daughter before she ended up getting hurt.

"Can't imagine where she gets her adventurous streak from," she sarcastically told Jethro, shooting him a Look, as she peeled the wrapper off of the cupcake so that Hannah could eat it.

He shrugged. "Must be from you."

After Hannah had her fill of the cupcake, Jenny and Jethro took her home. "You ready to go?" Tony asked Ziva as he sat on the edge of her desk.

"Almost. I got interrupted from my last report when Hannie came in."

"You weren't running around with her, were you?" he asked.

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Relax, Tony, I am fine. I am pregnant, not invalid."

"In-VUH-lid," Tim corrected her from his spot across the bullpen.

Ziva frowned, confused. "What?"

"You meant to say that you're not an in-VUH-lid," Tony explained. "In-VAL-id is an adjective. And no, you're not, but that's not what you meant to say."

She considered that for a moment. "They are spelled the same, yes?"

"Yeah, just…Nevermind. One of these days I'm going to give up trying to explain English."

"Good. There are some things that are inexplicable."

* * *

That night, after dinner and presents with Hannah, Jethro headed for the basement to keep working on the boat. Jenny sat on the stairs to watch, their pajama-clad daughter curled up in her arms.

"I wonder if she knew?" Jenny quietly asked at one point.

"Knew what?"

"How important should would be to us…to me. If she hadn't been born early, I never would have come back to DC – you would have come to Martinique. If I hadn't come to DC, your team wouldn't have caught on to what was happening, Ducky wouldn't have found out about Hannah's blood tests until after it was already too late, and I would be dead by now… If there's no such thing as coincidence, then I have to believe something else was at work."

Jethro smiled. "All I know is that the two of you sitting there is an amazing sight." Jenny returned his grin as Hannah started whimpering. "Aw, what's the matter, sweetheart?" he asked as he reached for her. "You ready for bed?" She reached for him with one hand, rubbing her eye with the other.

"I think that we have finally depleted her energy reserves," Jenny commented as she handed the baby over.

"Well, before she conks out, I had one last present for the night," he said, heading back over to his workbench.

"Really? I think between you and your team, she's going to get spoiled rotten."

"I never said it was for Hannah." Jethro handed her a small package wrapped in brown-paper.

Jenny smiled. "Well, it's not MY birthday."

"Yeah, I know," he replied as he knelt beside her seat on the stairs, still cradling their almost-asleep daughter, "But since you gave me Hannie, I thought it you should get something in return."

Jenny untied the string and pulled back the paper to reveal a hand-carved wooden jewelry box. "Oh, Jethro…"

"Just a little side project I've been working on. Open it."

She obligingly opened the lid and gasped. A somewhat-sparkly-but-not-too-flashy diamond ring was sitting inside. "Didn't we have this conversation?" she quietly asked.

"A few things have changed since then," he replied. "There's probably a thousand reasons why you should say no, Jen – feel free to pick any of them. But I'm asking anyway."

"Why?"

"Because I love you."

"As far as I know, that's not a new development. Before, you were asking for me – it was a gift, not a real marriage. Why are you asking now?"

He was silent for a long moment, struggling to find the words. It was an honest question and deserved an honest answer. "Tobias made a comment a few weeks ago about getting back what I lost. Never thought that would happen…and I realized that it hasn't. You and Hannah are not replacements. You said that not getting married before meant more than doing it. Now, I think it's the opposite."

Jenny looked away; Hannah was now dead asleep in her father's arms, looking just as perfectly comfortable in his embrace as she always did. All three of them had gotten pretty comfortable together in the past year. "It will be an interesting ride," she quietly mused.

Jethro chuckled. "Damn right."

She shrugged, picking up the ring and offering both it and her left hand for him to put it on. "All right, I suppose I could put up with you," she deadpanned. "For Hannah's sake."

He laughed. "I'm getting more and more grateful for her by the day."

* * *

**FIN (unless I decide to do a sequel)  
**

**A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading and especially everyone who reviewed. If you didn't fall into that latter category, it's not too late! :-) **


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